F 157 
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Copy 1 



PAPERS READ 



BEFORE THE 



lETY. 



SEPTENIBEK 5, 1902. 



HISTORICAL POINTS OF INTEREST ALONG THE 
STRASBURG TROLLEY ROAD. 

MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER MEETING. 



VOL. VII. NO. L /^Ip^ 



% .7 



LANCASTER, PA. 

Kepeinted from The New Era. 

1902. 



Historical Points of Interest Along the Strasbui-o Trolley 

Road, ....-.--- 3 

Bv Walter M. Franklin, Esq 
Minutes of September Meeting. - - - - . 15 



P. 

A. nth or. 

19 H^02 



HISTORICAL POINTS OF INTEREST 

ALONG THE STRASBURG 

TROLLEY ROAD. 



There is scarcely any portion of 
Lancaster county that does not afford 
valuable material for the student of 
local history. Almost any section can 
be taken up, and with the least pains 
towards accurate research it is sur- 
prising how much that is interesting 
and often edifying will be the reward. 

The new trolley line from Lancaster 
to Strasburg passes over a route that 
is not only most picturesque, exhibiting 
a panorama of rare natural beauty and 
a landscape approaching the perfection 
of rural culture, but the whole region 
is replete with historical interest, and 
the landmarks of bygone days bear 
many lessons of value to the present 
generation. 

Starting at Penn Square, the centre 
of the city, we are within a stone's 
throw of the site of "Hickoi-y Tree" 
tavern, kept by George Gibson, the 
early resort of Indians and of foreign 
traders, which gave the locality the 
name of Indian Field and later Gib- 
son's pasture, and with the small clus- 
ter of habitations scattered along the 
King's Highway, now King street, 
formed the nucleus of the future shire 
town of Lancaster. 

The starting point is also within 
range of the shadow of what at a later 
period was one of the most famous 
public resorts kept first by Joseph 
Hubley, and afterwards for many 
years by his widow. Rosina 
Hubley, on the southeast corner of 
Penn Square. It was originally estab- 
lished by Matthias Slough as early as 
17G1. and was called the "White Swan." 
and later the "Golden Swan." It was 
to the yard of this central inn that the 



(4) 

raiders known as the "Paxton Boys" 
came in 1763, determined upon exter- 
minating the Indians, who had been 
placed for protection in the newly- 
erected workhouse. Hastily dismount- 
ing they turned their horses loose in 
the yard of the inn, rushed to the 
workhouse nearby, and massacred all 
the Indians they found confined there- 
in. 

Another ancient hostelry, with quite 
an interesting history, that stood close 
by was the Fountain Inn, which was 
opened in 1758 by Christopher Reigart. 
who was its landlord through the try- 
ing times of the Revolution, and till 
his death, in 1783. The County Courts 
were held for several terms in the 
Fountain Inn while the Court House 
was in course of construction on Ppnn 
Square. A curious old show bill has 
been preserved advertising a theatre at 
the Fountain Inn in 1811. The Foun- 
tain Inn has given way to the Hotel 
Lincoln. 

In close proximity, at the corner of 
South Queen and Vine streets, stands 
the Swan, opened in 1824, and origin- 
ally named the Lancaster City and 
County Hotel. When it came into the 
ownership of Joseph Hubley he named 
it the Swan, the same as his hotel in 
Penn Square. 

The first square of South Queen 
street, which is one of our oldest 
streets, is notable also as having had 
on either side the residences of some 
of the best-known of the old-time 
families, among them the residences 
and offices of Jasper Yeates, Justice of 
the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 
and John R. Montgomery, whose elo- 
quence is a cherished tradition of the 
Bar, and Thaddeus Stevens, the "Old 
Commoner," and the brilliant 0. J. 
Dickey and A. Herr Smith, and A. O 
Newpher, and W. P. Brinton, and four 
of Lancaster's most distinguished 
physicians. Doctors Muhlenberg, and 



(n) 

Carpenter, and A. M. and Patrick Cas- 
sidy. 

Proceeding down South Queen street 
we pass the site of the first Friends 
Meeting House, which was completed 
in 1759 at a cost of £551, 63s., 3d., ac- 
cording to the records, and where now 
stands Odd Fellows' Hall, and further 
down are Zion, Woodward Hill and 
Greenwood Cemeteries, the first hav- 
ing been established by the vestry of 
Zion Lutheran Church in 1854, and 
Woodward Hill a few years earlier by 
the vestry of Trinity Lutheran Church. 
At the solicitation of many citizens 
after it had been established some 
years, Woodward Hill was made a pub- 
lic cemetery and was chartered March 
29, 1851. Lancaster Cemetery was 
chartered four years previously, on 
March 8, 1847. 

Within view along the route are 
some of the largest industries of the 
city, including the immense plant of 
the Hershey Chocolate Company, the 
Banner cheroot cigar factory, the Far- 
num cotton mills, the Miller soan and 
perfumery works, Carbon steel casting 
works, the gas works, and the power 
plant of the Lancaster County Rail- 
way and Light Company. Before 
reaching the Conestoga creek, we pass 
the site of the old Conestoga iron fur- 
nace, located on Hoffman's Run, built 
by Robert and James Colvin and 
George Ford, in 1846, and operated 
iatterly by Peacock & Thomas, until 
it was dismantled. It was originally 
a charcoal furnace, supplied with cord- 
wood from the river hills, much ol 
which was transported via the Cones- 
toga-Slackwater navigation. 

Coming to the Conestoga creek, we 
are close by one of the oldest mill 
sites in the county, now taken up by 
Levan's flour mill, formerly a fulling, 
or woolen, mill. We are also on the 
spot that was the terminus of the 
Slackwater navigation, where "thf 



(6) 

landing" was once the scene of busy 
commercial activity. The original 
fording and the first bridge across the 
creek were at a point about 200 yards 
east of the present bridge at the ex- 
tension of a lane running directly 
south from Queen street. 

The history of the navigation of the 
Conestoga creek is Quite interesting. 
As early as 1805 the idea was enter- 
tained of establishing a system of 
navigation on the Conestoga by means 
of dams with lift locks, and a charter 
was obtained for that purpose. An- 
other charter was taken out for the 
same purpose in 1820, but nothing was 
done under either of them, and the 
charters became inoperative. 

In 1825 the Conestoga Navigation 
Company was incorporated, and in- 
cluded among its active promoters 
were such well-known names as Adam 
Reigart. Edward Coleman, George B. 
Porter, Jasper Slaymaker, John F. 
Steinman, George Lewis Mayer, Hugh 
Maxwell, John Reynolds, F. A. Muh- 
lenberg, John R. Montgomery, James 
Humes and others. The work of con- 
structing the dams and locks was 
commenced promptly, and in the fol- 
lowing year the first lock was fin- 
ished, and the event, we are told, was 
<olebrated with great rejoicing. The 
Board of Managers embarked on board 
the beautiful, new boat, "Edward 
Coleman," at the bridge, and pro- 
ceeded at the rate of about five miles 
an hour to the lock, with a band of 
music on board playing national airs. 
At the lock was a committee of ladies 
from Lancaster, under escort of Judge 
Molton C. Rogers and Dr. Samuel 
Humes. The ladies, through Mrs. Wil- 
liam Jenkins, presented the contractor 
with a flag and a congratulatory ad- 
dress, and were invited, with their es- 
corts, on board, and the boat pro- 
ceeded to Reigart's Landing, and in 
tbe afternoon leturned to the bridge. 



(7) 

The works were completed in due 
time to Safe Harbor, and embraced 
nine dams and locks, with a fall of 
sixty-four feet in a total length of a 
little over seventeen miles. Subse- 
quently, in 1837, the property passed 
into the hands of Edward and Wil- 
liam Coleman, under the title of the 
Lancaster and Susquehanna Slack- 
water Navigation Company, and in the 
following year a dam was built across 
the river at Safe Harbor for the pur- 
pose of floating packet boats across, 
which were towed by steamboats, and 
there was a flourishing traffic for a 
considerable time. 

Crossing the Conestoga over the 
beautiful new iron bridge that has 
taken the place of the old covered 
wooden bridge which was for many 
years in a dangerous condition of de- 
cay, we enter the township of West 
Lampeter, and run along the Willow 
Street turnpike, which was one of the 
old colonial roads forming the main 
highway to the South; passing the old 
Steinman powder house, then making 
a detour to cross Mill Creek close by 
one of the oldest mill sites, passing 
in view of the old Lamb Tavern and 
the widely-known Hollinger tanneries, 
and thence on the turnpike to Willow 
Street, we are in the neighborhood of 
the earliest Swiss Mennonite settle- 
ment in Lancaster county. From here 
the road winds over to Lampeter 
Square, makes a detour to cross Mill 
Creek, which is the boundary of Stras- 
burg township, and, passing along the 
Old Mennonite Church, whose large 
burying ground contains the graves of 
some of the most noted of the old 
pioneers, we soon reach the western 
limit of the borough of Strasburg, and 
traverse its main streets for a distance 
of two miles to the eastern boundary, 
terminating at the plantation of Major 
B. P^rank Breneman, where is present- 
ed a magniiicent view of the Pequca 



(8 \ 

Valley, with the Welsh Mountains in 
the far distance. 

It is to be noted after leaving the 
southern boundary of the city only a 
small portion of the route of the rail- 
way is in Lancaster township, whose 
boundary is the Conestoga Creek. 

Crossing the creek the greater por- 
tion of the line is in West Lampeter, 
which is one of the original townships 
that was formed when the county was 
laid out in 1729. Lampeter was divided 
into East and West Lampeter in 1841, 
and was named after Lampeter in 
Wales, the native place of a few of the 
first settlers. The Welsh, though few 
in numbers, were intelligent and influ- 
ential, and took a prominent part iu 
public affairs; they were more numer- 
ous in the eastern and northeastern 
parts of the county, where they gave 
names to Caernarvon and Brecknock 
townships. A myth exists regarding 
the name of Lampeter, which arose 
from a statement contained in a curi- 
ous work of fiction written more than 
half a century ago by Ezra Lamborn, 
an old school teacher, residing in the 
neighborhood of Lampeter Square. In 
his ambitious attempt to produce a 
novel, which he entitled, "The Legend 
of Hell Street Lane, or the Man with 
Two Heads," our imaginative author 
set afloat the story that Lampeter 
township was first called "Lame 
Peter," in honor of a lame tavern- 
keeper by the name of Peter Yeordy. 
Strangely, the story in course of time 
gained some credence, until it was ex- 
posed as a mere flight of the imagin- 
ation. Lampeter in Wales is a seat 
of theological Jearning, and in the 
Welsh language it signifies "The 
Church of Peter," or St. Peter's 
Church. 

Lampeier was the birthplace of 
David Miller, Sheriff of Lancaster 
rounty in 1834, who was an eccentric, 
Uiough amiable character, and who 



(9) 

was familiarly known as "Devil Dave" 
Miller. He made return of a bench 
warrant to Judge Lewis on one occa- 
sion by riding on his horse up the steps 
•of the Court House and through the 
main aisle of the court room, dis- 
mounting in front of the bench. He 
kept the Washington House, on East 
King street, located next to the 
Farmers' National Bank, and ran what 
was known as the Blue Line freight 
cars on the Pennsylvania Railroad. 
His sister, Ann Miller, survives at the 
age of 91, and resides in the old home- 
stead at Lampeter Square. 

One of the earliest settlements in 
Lancaster county was made in Lam- 
peter township in the year 1709, and 
consisted of Swiss Mennonites, who 
were refugees from the religious perse- 
cution and political tyranny that pre- 
vailed throughout Germany, France 
and Switzerland. In the latter part of 
the seventeenth century a large num- 
ber of Mennonites from the Swiss can- 
tons and the region of the Rhine 
known as the Palatinate fled to Alsace, 
near the ancient city of Strasburg. At- 
tracted by the liberal proposals of 
William Penn, they were induced to 
hazard the voyage across the Atlantic 
and come to what was then literally 
Penn's Woods, and they made their 
earliest settlement in Lancaster county 
in the vicinity of the now flourishing 
villages of Willow Street and Lam- 
peter. 

About midway between these two 
villages, on the farm of the venerable 
David Huber, an incorporator of the 
railway and one of its earliest and 
most influential champions, and re- 
garded as "the father" of the enter- 
prise, stands well preserved a portion 
of what is believed to be the oldest 
house in Lancaster county. It is a 
model of substantial masonry and 
.solid oak timber work. The first Men- 
nouite Church l)uilt in Lancaster 



( 10) 

county was erected on this property in 
1712, and was used as a school house 
during the week. The land has passed 
do>\'n through generations of ancestors 
direct from William Penn to the pres-. 
ent owner, who lives in comfortable 
retirement with his amiable wife, 
daughter of the late John McCartney, a 
noted scrivener and conveyancer, the 
Huber crossing being exactly midway 
between the terminal points of the rail- 
way. 

Among the early settlers in the Pe- 
quea Valley were Hans Mylin and his 
sons, Martin and John; Martin J^.en- 
dig, Hans Herr, Ulrich Brackbill and 
others, who selected a tract of 10,000 
acres, for which they obtained a war- 
rant, October 10, 1710, which was sub- 
sequently divided among them by the 
Surveyor General, on April 27, 1711, 
and much of the same land is held by 
their descendants to this day. These 
early settlers were people of not only 
great sturdiness and thrift, but of high 
purpose and most estimable character. 

Martin Mylin was a famous preacher 
and writer, and Hans Herr was their 
Bishop. The latter was chosen by lot 
to return to Europe to induce their 
relatives and others to come to the 
new country, but his flock were so re- 
luctant to spare him that Martin Ken- 
dig, who was an influential leader 
among them, volunteered to go in his 
place, and made the hard journey, 
bringing back with him a considerable 
number of immigrants. Among those 
who sought the new land was Mat- 
thias Schleiermacher, a man of means 
and of great force of character, who 
came from Strasburg, in Alsace, in 
1710, and took up a tract of a thou- 
sand acres; and tradition credits him 
with having given the township in 
which it lay the name of Strasburg, at 
first "New Strasburg," which was 
carved out of Leacock in 1759, the lat- 
ter being so named by a Scotch-Irish 



(11) 

settler, who came from Leacock in 
Ireland. 

There were also among those who 
were attracted by the Swiss Menno- 
nites, a few i< rench Huguenots, Daniel 
Ferree, Isaac Lefevre and others, who 
bought a large portion of the tract 
taken up uy the original Swiss set- 
tlers, and this location formed later 
the township of Paradise, the post 
town or village being so named uy an 
early settler, Joshua Scott, who.stand- 
ing where he beheld the beauties of 
the surrounding country, was so 
charmed that he declared it should be 
called Paradise. 

Paradise township was separated 
from Strasburg township in the year 
1843. The survey was made by Jacob 
Hildebrand, the veteran surveyor and 
conveyancer, of Strasburg, and this 
was his first employment, when, as a 
young man, he began the occupation 
of surveying. 

An interesting incident with regard 
to the village of Paradise is in con- 
nection with the well-known and pop- 
ular ballads of Stephen G. Foster, who 
was the author of "My Old Ken- 
tucky Home,' "Old Dog Tray," and 
other familiar songs. Mr. Foster lived 
in Kentucky, and sent his songs to his 
sister, the wife of the Rev. Dr. Edward 
Yates Buchanan, rector of All Saints' 
Church, in Paradise. Mrs. Buchanan 
had a melodeon, and to its accompan- 
iment these songs were first heard in 
Paradise, and were, therefore, we may 
say, literally "songs of Paradise." Mrs. 
Cassatt, wile of A. J. Cassatt, Presi- 
dent of the Pennsylvania Railroad 
Company, is a daughter of the late 
Dr. Buchanan, who was the only 
brother of President James Buchanan. 
It is not genrally known. perhai)s, that 
President Cassatt spent a portion of 
his youth in Lancaster county, while 
his father resided at Hai'dwick, in 
Manheim township, which is now part 



( 12) 

of the extensive tract adjoining Lan- 
caster city, owned by B. J. McGrann. 

The borough of Strasburg is beauti- 
fully situated on an elevateu ridge of 
the richest limestone soil. Its history 
extends uack to 1733, when ihe first 
house is said to have been ouilt by a 
man named Hoffman. Soon there was 
gathered a considerable village, which 
bore the name of Bettel Hansen (beg- 
gar houses), and in 1816 IJhe borough 
was chartered and given the name of 
Strasburg. From the earliest period 
of its history there was a strong senti- 
ment in favor of education, and the 
town that was the birthplace of so dis- 
tinguished an educator as Thomas H. 
Burrowes may jusiiy be said to have 
been the nursery of the Pennsylvania 
Free School System. His parents, 
Thomas Breadon Burrowes and Har- 
riet, his wife, are buried in the old 
Presbyterian Churchyard in the bor- 
ough. 

Thomas H. Burrowes was born in 
Strasburg on November 16, 1805. His 
parents returned to Ireland with their 
family and remained there for some 
years, during which time he completed 
his education at the University of 
Dublin. 

A public meeting was held in Janu- 
ary, 1831, in the little bricit school 
house on Jackson street. At this time 
Mr. Burrowes was a member of the 
State Legislature, and from this meet- 
ing was sent the first petition >.o the 
Legislature in favor of public schools, 
and resulted in the passage of the Act 
of 1831, appropriating funds for the 
purpose of establishing public schools, 
and, later, in 1835, in the formal es- 
tablishment of the free school system 
of Pennsylvania. 

The celebrated Presbyterian divine. 
Rev. George Duffieid, D.D., was born 
in Strasburg, July 4, 1796. And on the 
main street of the borough, in a stone 
house still standing, was born and 



(13) 

reared Martha, daughter of John 
Pfoutz, who was the wife of Charles 
Cameron and mother of General Si- 
mon Cameron. The borough was the 
birthplace of many prominent and 
most useful public-spirited citizens 
and has contributed its quota towards 
what has made Lancaster county re- 
nowned as a -little kingdom within its 
own domain.' 

" O Strasburg. O Strasburg, 
Eine wunder schoene Stadt 
Darinnen liegt begraben— 
Ein mancher. ein schoener 
Ein braver Soldat; 
Der sein Vater 
Und seine Mutter, 
Verlassen hat." 

A circumstance in connection with 
the Strasburg trolley road greatly la- 
mented by the entire community was 
the untimely death on September 10 
1901. of Amos Hollinger, the first presi- 
dent of the company, and one of the in- 
corporators and original projectors In 
the success of the enterprise much was 
due to his energetic efforts and the un- 
bounded confidence every one felt in 
his integrity and business judgment, 
and there was universal regret that he' 
was not spared to see actually realized 
his long cherished desire for a trolley 
line in his neighborhood. 

Two of his associates who rendered 
invaluable assistance at the beginning 
of the enterprise, George W. Hensel. 
Cashier of the First National Bank of 
Strasburg, and Jacob L. Ranck, resid- 
ing immediately east of the borough in 
Strasburg township, were greatly in- 
fluential in determining the route and 
assuring final success. All who are 
connected with the company are felici- 
tated on the good judgment displayed 
in respect to the route and sagacity 
exercised in forming permanent con- 
nection with the Conestoga Traction 
Company, and, finally, the success in 
constructing and equipping the railway 



(14) 

in a manner that has fully met public 
expectations and secured to the people 
excellent transportation facilities with 
comfortable ana frequent service from 
early morning until late in the night. 
It is, however, only what is due from 
this generation, in the course of pro- 
gress, to the spirit of enterprise, the 
thrift, and the perseverance of their 
sturdy ancestors who converted the 
wilderness into a blooming garden. 
WALTER M. FRANKLIN. 



Minutes of the September Meeting. 

Lancaster, Pa., Sept. 5, 1902. 

The first fall meetinp of the Lancas- 
ter County Historical Society was held 
in the Society room this after- 
noon. President Steinman being in the 
chair. 

The roll of officers was called, and, 
on motion, the reading of the minutes 
of the last meeting was dispensed with. 
The application of J. J. Dengler, oi 
Lancaster, for membership, was re- 
ceived. 

The donations to the Society wero 
numerous, consisting of the following 
articles, donated by Samuel Evans, 
Esq., of Columbia: Manuscript copy 
of Surveyor General Taylor's surveys 
of land warrants issued in Lancaster 
county and profiles of the same; gene- 
alogy of the Houston Family; History 
of Danville, Pa., and Journal of Cap- 
tain Jonathan Heart, an officer of the 
Revolution; by a friena, a German 
hymn book and the minutes of the 
Jackson Rifles military company, of 
this city, from January, I800, to Feo- 
ruary, 1839; The F. and M. HullabaloT 
and a pictorial history of Reading, by 
F. R. Diffenderffer; Origin and History 
of the Smithsonian Institution and four 
volumes of the Reports of the Ameri- 
can Historical Association, 1899 and 
1900, by rlon. H. Burd Cassel; map of 
Lancaster city, of Lancaster township 
and of Lancaster county, handsomely 
framed, and Manual of Lancaster city, 
by Hon. E. S. Smeltz; Report of the 
State Library of New York; F. and M. 
Obituary Record, from Mr. S. H. Ranck, 
of Baltimore; Annals of Iowa, Vol. 5, 
four numbers; History of Donegal 
Presbyterian Church, by Dr. J. L. Zieg- 
ler; American Philosophical Society 
Proceedings; Records of Catholic His- 
torical Society for June, 1902; Pennsyl- 



(16) 

vania Magazine of History and Biogra- 
phy, July, 1902; The Pennsylvania 
German; Catholic Historical Research- 
es, Linden Hall Echo and Report of the 
Lancaster Board of Health for 190L 
The thanks of the Society were extend- 
ed to the several donors for their gifts. 
The donations of books and documents 
to the Society are growing, and it wel- 
(;omes all such, being amply provided 
with book-cases for their preservation, 
and where they will be permanently 
useful to those who desire to consult 
them. 

The paper of the day, under the title 
of "Historical Points of Interest Along 
the Strasburg Trolley Road," was read 
by Walter M. Franklin, Esq., and 
proved to be of great interest, dealing, 
as it did, with many historical places, 
persons and incidents. A lively discus- 
sion ensued over some of the points 
made, .a which most of the members 
present participated. The thanks of 
the Society were tendered Mr. Frank- 
lin for his valuable paper, and it was 
ordered to be printed in the usual way. 

The President appointed a commit- 
tee of three, composed as follows: Dr. 
.1. W. Hassler, S. M. Sener and F. R. 
Diffenderffer, to prepare a minute on 
the death of Mr. Amos Rutter, an old 
and valued member of the Society, 
and one who always manifested much 
interest in its prosperity. 

There being no further business, the 
Society adjourned. The attendance 
was large, a goodly number of ladies 
being present. 



LIBRfiRY OF CONGRESS 



014 207 584 2 



